18 September: Becoming

Have you ever been in a situation when you felt sure God had led you to something and felt sure you knew what you’d achieve; only to end up really confused about your purpose when you get there?  I can focus so much on what I achieve, what I create or what I’m doing that when those things fall away I question God.  Where are you Lord?  Did I hear you correctly when you called me here?  What God, do you want from me?

Or maybe, like me, you are in a place where you currently feel emotionally and physically exhausted.  I have no energy to give, no time to create, no ability to do anything beyond the basics.  So I worry, if I can’t do anything for God doesn’t that make me a failure?  What use am I?

I was reflecting on this – how useless and empty I felt one day – when God lavished me with the truth.  I realised that things can slow us down, things can incapacitate us or drain us; we can fail or have our purposes radically challenged, but nothing, nothing, can stop us from becoming.  Becoming more like Christ.  Becoming more filled with the Spirit of God and living out a life of joy, love, kindness, faithfulness.  

When Paul wrote in Romans 8 “…I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8 v 38 -39) I wonder if this is what he meant.  Life will be challenging.  It will be unexpected and confusing and at times we will fail to achieve what we hope for but God isn’t really interested in what we are doing he is passionate about who we are becoming and we are to become someone wrapped in and reflecting his love.  And so we are assured – nothing can get in the way of that love.

If you are in a situation today where nothing seems to be going your way, or where you know you won’t do anything the world thinks is worthwhile, look instead to who you are becoming in Christ.  Even curled up in a ball, sick and tired you can receive and reflect God’s love.  Even as you are made redundant or miss that promotion you can receive and reflect God’s love.  Hallelujah, praise the Lord!